The Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Clippers are in the middle of discussing a huge summer blockbuster deal that could reshape the entire league, as the teams are working on a deal including head coach Doc Rivers, forward Kevin Garnett and guard Paul Pierce, who would be headed West for DeAndre Jordan and draft picks.
According to ESPN.com and Yahoo Sports, the two sides may have hit a snag when it comes to compensation, but the Clippers and Celtics are talking about a deal that would involve Doc Rivers and Kevin Garnett, as well as Paul Pierce for multiple draft picks and DeAndre Jordan. The snag may include the addition of Eric Bledsoe in the deal, but the Clippers have so far refused to put him in the trade, as they want to keep him to use for another blockbuster deal. Reports have the team trading Blake Griffin and Bledsoe to the Lakers for Dwight Howard in a sign and trade deal. According to the Daily News, talks should resume heading into the draft.
The Celtics are likely entering a rebuilding phase and Rivers has said that he wants to keep Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce going for another year to try and win a championship and that may not be what the franchise wants to do. The trade overall has many moving parts, as Rivers is still under contract and the Clippers have interviewed Lionel Hollins and like him as a head coach option. Garnett said that he wants to play with Rivers and the trade would satisfy that and give the Celtics a chance to rebuild with some major pieces. The Clippers would then set themselves up to try and bring back Chris Paul and to trade for Howard in the sign and trade with the Lakers.
The Howard option for Blake Griffin and Eric Bledsoe could be an option for the Clippers, as they want to keep Paul and there have been reports that Paul and Howard have been talking about being teammates somewhere, possibly Atlanta as they have camp space, but the Clippers would put themselves in that situation with the trade after the July 1 start of free agency. The biggest obstacles in the deal currently is compensation with Rivers and the Celtics, as the team has leverage with three years left on his contract.
The trades would mark a major shift in the league and would give both the Clippers and the Lakers elite players and the Celtics the chance to speed along their process of rebuilding. LA is looking for a new head coach after letting Vinny Del Negro go despite winning their division and the deals would give a brand new style to both teams in the Staples Center. Earlier in the offseason the Clippers were rumored to be in talks with the Magic for Arron Afflalo for Bledsoe, but his addition into the Lakers deal would likely trump that one. Both teams would like to get the chance to remake their rosters despite successful seasons and this movement in the league would be the biggest news in that arena since LeBron James and Chris Bosh moved to the Miami Heat three years ago to join Dwyane Wade.